The most unforgettable bike I have ever ridden.
In a move that saw another American motorcycle company go
under, Motus Motorcycles in Birmingham, Alabama announced their closure via Facebook over the Labor Day weekend. The announcement stated the company
“is forced to shut down operations, effective immediately.”
The vision of building the ultimate American sport-touring
motorcycle was birthed in the minds and hearts of Lee Conn and Brian Case 10
years ago, and Motus was born. The uniquely American notion of building a bike
around essentially half a Corvette engine (their vaunted “Baby Block” MV4 1650)
captured the imagination of the American motorcycling world, if not their
wallets- the standard MST and sport MSTR fetching a rather whopping $30K-$36K,
respectively.
The issue for any fledgling motorcycle brand is always cash
to keep going and growing. Conn and Case wrote Friday, “This week, Motus
financial backers unexpectedly informed management that they will not provide
sufficient capital to maintain operations and grow the business.” After
thanking their “Team Motus” for dedicating “so much of their hearts and souls
to Motus”, the statement declared the founders “will work to quickly find a new
path forward.”
Motus joins a litany of downed American brands
in recent years, including Victory, Buell, and Brammo, among others. We at Born
to Ride certainly hope Conn and Case can reopen the doors of Motus in the
not-too-distant future.
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